Interning With Caterpillar Inc.

Caterpillar Employees Attacked by Protective Bird

2007-06-17T20:34:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, June 13 and Thursday, June 14, brought great excitement to downtown Peoria, as Hamilton Street pedestrians were attacked by a protective bird! This event brought great excitement to Caterpillar building AB, as the bird made local and national news! Plus, it was rather entertaining to see a sign warning of an attacking bird and a yellow chain to caution those who passed by.

View a video by CBS 4 of the attacking bird at: http://cbs4.com/video/?id=36109@wfor.dayport.com

Jun 15, 2007 12:44 pm US/Eastern
Caught On Tape: Bird Dive-Bombs Pedestrians

(CBS4) PEORIA, Ill Some folks in downtown Peoria, Illinois are scared to cross a certain sidewalk because a bird is dive-bombing pedestrians.

The unsuspecting walkers have no idea what awaits them but pretty soon, they find out. A redwing black bird, who is trying to protect her chick in a nearby next, is simply trying to defend its territory.

So it’s been continually dive-bombing anybody who walks by. It’s an extreme case of parental instinct and bird experts say the dive-bombing will continue until the chick is ready to fly.

Orange, Blue & Yellow?

2007-06-17T20:15:00.000-07:00

This past week (June 4, 2007- June 8, 2007) was a truly great week, full of learning experiences. Becoming immersed in Caterpillar culture is an experience all in itself. Frequently, I am asked if I am “bleeding yellow” yet. With my deep devotion to the orange and blue (University of Illinois), which will never fade, it will be fun to add mix this “yellow blood.” After only three weeks though and loving my experience at Caterpillar, I think I am beginning to see a yellow vein.

So why do I love my experience with Cat so much? Diverse opportunities. Caterpillar aims to develop their employees to their fullest potential and beyond. Consistent training, information sessions and skilled professionals surround me, allowing me a learning opportunity each and every minute.

Last week, I started off Monday by reviewing the Trade Press website, which I am updating the images on. To comply with “common look and feel” standards established by Caterpillar, I am updating the images so they are standardized with the new trade dress. This trade dress, introduced by Caterpillar is a red power stripe (diagonal red line) that is visible on recently released equipment.

On Tuesday, I was privileged to meet with one of my team members, who is an advertising job director for clients. She is highly respected and works with many clients to aid and delegate the process of creating promotional campaign materials. During this job shadowing session I learned about her many job responsibilities, brand standards, internal vs. external advertising sources and agencies. Personally, having mixed views of advertisement agencies, talking with my teammate led to an opportunity to visit the agency Simantel (www.simantel.com). Visiting Simantel with another teammate of mine was awesome! The agency’s office is a beautifully re-done boxing arena abounds of creativity. Receiving a personal tour, I met several staff members and learned about their current projects and clients. Everyone from account managers, graphic designers, layout specialists, web designers, etc. took the time to explain their responsibilities and interactions with clients. I truly appreciated learning about Simantel and honestly did not want to leave their fun, creative atmosphere! Thanks to my great teammates, I was blessed with this exceptional opportunity!

Wednesday brought additional learning opportunities, which included learning more about the Trade Press website. Attending a meeting regarding updates to the site, I met two men from the eChannel group within Cat, who work on the Cat.com sites. Further complying with common look and feel, our websites must also be updated, to speak the proper voice of Cat. Working with a team of two experts on web development and two from Trade Press was a neat experience, as I learned how the websites are separate entities but under the umbrella of cat.com. I look forward to setting up job shadowing sessions with the eChannel representatives.

Attending my first client- agency meeting on Thursday, I received a true feel for the setup of marketing/ advertising campaigns when working with an ad agency. It was a pleasure to meet two representatives from Marcus Thomas advertising agency of Cleveland, Ohio. Marcus Thomas prides itself in the way they stimulate creativity, employees are allowed to bring mans best friend to the office. Yes, if you ever visit Marcus Thomas be prepared, you will be surrounded by dogs! How neat! Aside from the dog conversation, Thursday’s meeting focused on a marketing campaign for Caterpillar. At Caterpillar, we pride ourselves in being industry leaders by providing superior equipment and by buying the Caterpillar brand, customers reap quality results. Such quality products deserve only premier marketing campaigns such as the one discussed on Thursday.

Additionally, on Thursday, I was allowed a tour of Caterpillar buildings SS and HH, located across the road from building CV. Buildings SS and HH are where Caterpillar undercarriage systems are made. This was a truly humbling experience that I believe should be implemented much sooner into the Corporate Intern program. Interns such as me, are aware of the products we support, yet we lack an understanding of why we are really Caterpillar employees. Sporting a hardhat, safety glasses and ear plugs in a 100 degree building puts office work in a totally different perspective. Observing men and women haul enormous steel rods with Caterpillar equipment through the manufacturing buildings and then melt the rods down to steel is an amazing process. Watching steel links that support undercarriage for track type tractors was a great that allowed me an even greater appreciation for my role at Caterpillar.

Come Friday, it was my belief that the week could not get any better. However, Friday was a great end. On Friday, I began my 6 Sigma Green Belt training. Working one- on-one with a 6 Sigma Black Belt made this a very learning experience very beneficial and worthwhile. Green Belt training begins with the Define and Analyze sessions of the 6 Sigma process. I was grateful to complete three hours of training on Friday, leaving me two sessions for Monday.

Following training, I left for the Caterpillar Mapleton Foundry. All interns were provided the opportunity to schedule a tour of the Foundry throughout the week. This was an amazing experience, again reaffirming why Caterpillar is an industrial leader. Plus an experience such as this allows for greater appreciation of the Caterpillar culture. Mapleton Foundry, located in Mapleton, IL, is where engines are made. Seeing tons of sand and iron be mixed together to make an engine block is an interesting process. Walking through a 100 degree plus factory, allows one to appreciate their office job and all the workers that help make Caterpillar a leader.

Experiences such as factory tours, Green Belt trainings and more are keeping me busy, but I am never to busy for my friends and family. Please be sure to drop me a note, comment on my blog or give me a call. Have a great week!

Digging In at Cat

2007-05-31T17:27:00.000-07:00

As I begin my tasks at Caterpillar, I am excited about all that I have learned and what I will continue to learn. Although this week has been short, it has been very productive as well. Last week, I meet my team’s black belt and he informed me of a 6 Sigma project that I could potentially become involved in that would allow me to obtain my green belt. Few interns have the opportunity to work on a project allowing them to get their green belt, which is one of my goals for the summer, so I jumped at the opportunity. My supervisor was also excited about this opportunity and lucky I inquired about joining the project just in time to attend the kick off meeting. The 6 Sigma project I am working on deals with client efficiency improvement within the advertising group of GCMS. Our 18 member team of diverse Caterpillar employees will work to make interactions between Caterpillar employees and Caterpillar equipment dealers more time efficient.

Additionally, this summer I am responsible for updating the Trade Press web site. Trade Press is where industrial publications editors and interested representatives can turn to receive press releases, new product information, images and application stories about Caterpillar. To access the Trade Press web site please visit: http://www.catnewsinfo.cat.com/cda/layout?m=49775&x=7. Specifically, on the site click the “Images” tab, and then select “Accept these terms & take me to the Gallery,” then choose any of the listed Caterpillar products to view the image updates I am implementing. These image updates are in response to current Trade Dress updates. The most current update within Caterpillar is the introduction of the red power stripe. This diagonal strip is now displayed on all Caterpillar equipment. In order to maintain a common look and feel for Caterpillar, all images utilized must portray the updated power stripe. This project involved downloading and saving thumbnail, high resolution and low resolution photos. Essentially, these photos will be used to facilitate projects completed by Caterpillar employees and dealers.

Continuing to advance my progress at Caterpillar is another significant goal I accomplished this week. Ensuring my progress is essential, thus I was privileged to discuss my SMART Goals with my supervisor. Ironically, my SMART Goals aligned almost exactly with the goals my team had prepared for me. As an intern, I look forward to completing the following:

SMART Goal #1: Achieve business plan by meeting or exceeding labor-hour targets. Difficulty---Normal Strategic Alignment: CSF---Tough

Planned Results:

a) Reach or exceed the department's labor-hour target of 210 for internship period.

Actions Taken:

a) Karlie's focus on labor hours led to over (xxx) hours being posted during her review period. A significant reason for Karlie (meeting/exceeding) her labor hour target was her willingness to go above and beyond . . . A prime example was her volunteering to . . . Another example was Karlie's making time to write occasional copy for her coworkers' projects, such as the Trade Press website. Overall Assessment:

SMART Goal #2: Improve employee engagement and culture by completing MPSD-required training and personal development goals, based on career development plans. Difficulty---Normal Strategic Alignment: CSF---People

Planned Results:

a) Successfully complete 100% of required learning in CLMS.

b) Fully participate in all assigned intern programs, tours, sessions and activities.

c) Complete training on Trade Press web site and acquire skills including, but not limited to image support.

Actions Taken: Karlie completed the Strengths Finder assessment, to evaluate her strengths and weaknesses, while gaining insight to how she fits into the MPSD team.

Overall Assessment:

SMART Goal #3: Provide strategic and tactical support for the enterprise, leveraging communications expertise, including actively supporting Advertising Job Directors and Trade Press Editors. Difficulty - Challenging

Strategic Alignment: CSF---Quality

Planned Results:

a) Participate in synergy meetings between MPSD and PSD Advertising groups, as time/ schedule allows.

b) Work with Trade Press Editors to:

- Update image library in the Trade Press website using images with new trade dress

- Download editorial content to the Trade Press website

- Coordinate annual trade press editor’s survey.

- Assist in the assembly of press kits.

Actions Taken:

Overall Assessment:

SMART Goal #4: Ensure assigned marketing processes contribute to Caterpillar’s initiative to become world-class marketing organization and are recognized as best value for the enterprise—level of difficulty: Difficult

Strategic alignment: CSF Quality

Planned results:

a. Participate as Green Belt on 6 Sigma projects and contribute additional project ideas (if possible)

b. Fully support Advertising Job Directors on projects and with StarLink initiatives.

Actions taken:

Assessment:

Throughout my internship experience and during my monthly reviews, I will be able to analyze, along with my supervisor my progress on these goals and how I can better strive to achieve them.

It is amazing how much a person can learn in two weeks and I am definitely doing that. On Wednesday, I was quickly trained on how to update the images for Trade Press and on Thursday I was selecting and updating images that will be utilized globally. What an experience!

Week One Overview

2007-05-28T19:17:00.000-07:00

My first week at Caterpillar Inc. was a great experience. Learning about corporate

America

is truly fascinating, as it is a bustling world, complete with quick decisions, prestigious roles and amazingly qualified people.

During my first week I have learned a great deal of new skills and obtained a multitude of information about Caterpillar. I am excited to begin my assigned projects with my colleagues. I am greatly looking forward to learning more about web design, image standards, trade shows, press kits, global marketing and product support. Looking forward to my tasks, I also hope to work with a team on a project that will allow me to attend workshops and seminars that will ultimately enable me to achieve the next status level this summer. Only having 10 weeks to accomplish all that I hope to, is not much time, but I am excited and willing to take on any challenges.

The tasks I completed this week include completing my Caterpillar Learning Management classes, which are informational on- line training sessions about the company’s policies, standards and specific MPSD requirements. These sessions were very interesting, especially the ones on advertising standards and brands. The advertising portion my team deals with is eye opening, as I assumed that advertisements were designed and produced by my team. However, this is not the case, my team delegates advertising requests from Caterpillar’s dealers to writers, photographers, trademark specialists and layout designers, all who work to develop spec sheets and additional promotional materials. Part of my team’s job is to review the drafts of the spec sheets and promotional materials while communicating with the dealers about their wants and needs. I am greatly looking forward to this project and meeting the designers, writes, etc. who all greatly contribute to these processes.

Another project I look forward to working with is Trade Press. Trade Press is best explained as the event that introduces new Caterpillar products to the industry. However though, Trade Press is specifically for editors of industrial magazines. With Trade Press, I will be updating the image library on their website so that all Caterpillar images are consistent and show updated equipment logos. Wanting to learn more about website design and maintenance, this project will be very worth while and a beneficial learning experience. Also with Trade Press, I hope to attend Cat 101, a three day workshop aimed to improve editors skills and enhance their knowledge of how to best report at a trade show.

A requirement of my internship is to develop SMART goals, which are goals set at the beginning of my internship that “become the foundation for all performance related activities.” SMART goals stand for: Specific, Measurable, Action- Oriented, Realistic, Time and Resource Constrained.

Specific: What will be affected?

Measurable: How much will be affected?

Action- Oriented: How will the goal be reached?

Realistic: Is the goal practical and attainable?

Time and Resource Constrained: When must the goal be achieved and with what resources?

My SMART goals include:

- Perform at the highest level and achieve superior excellence on all assigned tasks.

- Attain greater knowledge in global advertising and communication marketing.

- Enhance editing skills.

- Achieve superior status on all CLMS assignments and in workshop settings.

- Obtain the opportunity to obtain green belt status.

- Increase understanding of Caterpillar Inc. and the company’s key goals.

o Evaluate Caterpillar’s team environment and performance standards.

Starting Out Right at Caterpillar!

2007-05-23T18:39:00.000-07:00

Integrity, teamwork, excellence and commitment are Caterpillar’s core values, which directly align my personal core values. After Caterpillar intern orientation for the company’s 300 summer 2007 interns, I was elated to know I am working for a company that prides itself in committing to its customers and employees. The Caterpillar brand is known world wide and its logo is synonymous to quality, dependability and trust. Because of these commitments and the efforts taken at Caterpillar to ensure top quality performance by not only their equipment, but also their employees, my company has big plans for the future that expand into 2020.

It is extremely rewarding to know that work I do today as an intern is helping advance the company’s ambitions to reach their goals they have set for 2020. Learning about Caterpillar’s goals for 2010 and 2020 at orientation was very fulfilling, as it allowed me to concretely see where the company is going and that employees are together working towards specific goals.

These first three days of my internship experience have been extremely fulfilling. Although the first day, orientation, was basically paperwork, the words communicated by the intern coordinator were extremely positive and motivating. Plus, by my estimation, of the 300 summer 2007 interns, over half are returning for a second, third or fourth internship experience—this is refreshing.

On the second day, the Marketing and Product Support Division (MPSD) interns met with our coordinator for an overview of more specific requirements for our area. These specific requirements included work expectations, program benefits, assignments, dress code and intern socials. Additionally, we received a tour of a Caterpillar building and were then dismissed to our permanent locations.

It was very exciting to learn which building I am located in this summer. Very few (yet very fortunate) interns are placed in this building, as it is the building housing Caterpillar’s most senior officials. How extremely blessed I am to be part of such a prime opportunity!

Additionally on my second day I met my supervisor and teammates. My official job title as presented to me by my supervisor reads, “Intern will provide assistance and support to the Advertising Job Directors, Black Belt and Trade Press Editors. Specific responsibilities include: updating image library in the Trade Press website using images with new Trade Dress, assist in downloading editorial content to the Trade Press website, coordinate annual Trade Press editors survey, assist in assembly of press kits, support Advertising Job Directors and department Black Belt in the execution ok key initiatives (i.e. Global Advertising Framework).” As in- depth as this description is, I am extremely excited to begin my tasks and make what I hope is a positive impact on Caterpillar. As an intern I look forward to not working as an intern, but working as a full time manager at Caterpillar and having the same influence on my teammates that a manager has. One of my favorite quotes of the intern coordinator from my orientation is, “Dress not for the position you have, but dress for the position you want to have.” In other words, do not just give the efforts and impressions of an intern, instead supply the work and dedication of the position you desire. For me, this means I have a lot to contribute as the positions I desire include CEO of the company or vice president.